The News

A new pulmonary rehabilitation center opened at Boone Memorial Hospital this month. The center is named in honor of Grace Anne Dorney Koppel, the wife of former ABC news “Nightline” anchor, Ted Koppel.

Boone Memorial Hospital is honored to be one of three rural health organizations in West Virginia to receive financial support from the Dorney Koppel Family Charitable Foundation to start a state-of-the-art rehabilitation program to help patients suffering from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and other breathing problems.

Dorney is a Maryland attorney and Board Member of the Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Foundation (COPDF). She is a national patient-advocate for the empowerment of those who have COPD, emphasizing the improvement in quality of life when pulmonary rehabilitation is provided.

In 2001, Grace Anne was diagnosed with a very severe case of COPD and given a few years to live.

“I could walk half a block,” Dorney said. “Then I had to stop to try to catch my breath and I was not given much time.”

COPD is a group of lung diseases including emphysema, refractory asthma, chronic bronchitis and bronchiectasis. Instead of taking the prognosis as a death sentence, Grace Anne began pulmonary rehabilitation and through hard work and dedication increased her lung capacity and regained her ability to fully live her life. Since 2007, she has shared her experiences on a national platform and is a testament to not letting her health slow her down. She has served as a national advocate to increase the understanding of pulmonary rehabilitation and served as a model for the power of patients to actively create a healthier future for themselves.

Dorney and Koppel had the idea of expanding access to pulmonary rehabilitation for rural communities. When asked why they chose rural West Virginia, the answer is quite simple.

“Because it’s where the need is. A lot of people here in West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Kentucky have trouble breathing, so there’s great need here,” said Koppel.

Boone Memorial Hospital held its second Drive Thru Flu Shot Clinic and Veteran’s Day Tribute on November 11th.

“Two years ago one of our doctors, James Walker, suggested we do an event to recognize military personnel on Veteran’s Day. Since we already hold an annual Drive Thru Flu Shot Clinic, which we started several years ago our CEO Tommy Mullins thought it was a good idea to combine both events,” explained Marketing and Public Relations Director Karlie Price.

“We offered free shots to all Veterans and Military Personnel – those active, retired or honorably discharged. For everyone else the fee was $20.00. We felt this would be a nice way to thank our Veterans for their service,” said Mullins.

The Clinic was held at the Madison Funeral home thanks to cooperation and support from the Handley family. Forty-one total shots were given, twenty-eight of those being Veterans. The hospital served cake, punch, hot chocolate and coffee and gave out American flags and patriotic ink pens. The Veterans also received an American Flag lapel pin and a Certificate of Appreciation.

Boone Memorial Hospital has joined the National WPFL Hospital Campaign to Increase Organ Donor Registrations in WV and the U.S.

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, the campaign brings together national partners, local and regional organ, eye and tissue donation organizations, and hospitals throughout the nation to educate employees and their communities on the importance of organ, eye and tissue donation. Boone Memorial Hospital is committed to registering as many new donor designations as possible toward the national campaign goal.

“We greatly support educating others about the importance of becoming an organ donor. We are committed to this campaign and realize how many lives can be saved and improved by just one single donor. If we can get several people to register we know lives will change for the better,” said CEO Tommy Mullins, Boone Memorial Hospital.

The need is real. Each day, 79 Americans receive life-saving organ transplants and thousands more benefit from cornea and tissue transplants. These extraordinary gifts have been generously donated by ordinary people of all ages and backgrounds who took just a few minutes in a busy day to indicate their decisions to become organ and tissue donors. But broader awareness of the need for organ, eye and tissue donation is crucial. There are more than 114,000 people awaiting an organ transplant in the United States and each week, more than 100 people on the national transplant waiting list die because no organ is available.

In West Virginia alone there are 126 people waiting for an organ transplant.

Each year the American Cancer Society holds its Relay for Life in local communities across the country, like Madison. This year, the event was held on June 7, 2013 at the Madison Civic Center. Generally the event is held outdoors but due to weather complications the ACS moved the Relay indoors. BMH has been a long time supporter of the Relay and this year was no exception.

“We had three departments who organized teams and then various members of the hospital jumped on board,” said Karlie Belle Price, Marketing and Public Relations Director. “I am really amazed at how much money they raised in such a short time period. They really worked hard.”

Members of the BMH Medical Clinic raised just over $1000.00. Team Leader Pam Smith, MLT, ASCP, said it was the biggest Relay team she has coordinated to date. “We had over thirty people, which included coworkers and some of our family and friends. Our staff really pulled together; it was great. Rose Isenberg made baked goods, Terri Stone in Medical Records made hand-made embroidery bags and beaded bracelets, Dr. James Stollings donated $100.00 plus he and his wife Mary helped grill hot dogs at the event. Dr. Lafferty even bought all of our staff T-shirts,” said Smith.

Boone Memorial Hospital would like to recognize the June 2013 Employee of the Month, Elizabeth “Libby” Brown. Libby is originally from West Virginia but moved to Tennessee for almost 12 years and eventually returned back to WV to be closer to her parents and family. She currently resides in Wharton in Boone County and has been on staff at BMH for approximately two years. She is a Registered Nurse Clinical Implementation Specialist.

As the Clinical Implementation Specialist Libby implements and provides continued support of the BMH computer documentation systems at both the Rural Health Clinic and BMH Medical Clinic as well as the hospital. She recently re-implemented CPOE for all in-house patients and continues to support medical providers and the nursing staff.

Computerized physician order entry (CPOE) (also sometimes referred to as Computerized Provider Order Entry) is a form of patient management software. It is a process of electronic entry of medical practitioner instructions for the treatment of patients (particularly hospitalized patients) under his or her care. These orders are communicated over a computer network to the medical staff or to the departments (pharmacy, laboratory, or radiology) responsible for fulfilling the order. CPOE decreases delay in order completion, reduces errors related to handwriting or transcription, allows order entry at the point of care or off-site, provides error-checking for duplicate or incorrect doses or tests, and simplifies inventory and posting of charges.

Boone Memorial Hospital is pleased to announce that it now offers both Urology and Hematology Oncology at BMH. The Urology Clinic is offered the third Tuesday of each month from 8:30am to 3:30pm and the Hematology Oncology Clinic is offered every Friday from 8:30am to 1:30pm.

Dr. Ryan H. Fitzwater, DO is the practicing physician at the Urology Clinic. Fitzwater is a well-respected physician with the CAMC Physicians Group – Urology, which is affiliated with Charleston Area Medical Center. Fitzwater offers comprehensive urological services and has an extensive medical background.

Safique Ahmed, MD is the practicing physician at the Hematology Oncology Clinic. Ahmed offers comprehensive cancer care services, blood diseases, chemotherapy and treatment of malignant tumors and leukemia. Ahmed has 35 years experience and is affiliated with Logan Hematology Oncology.

“We are pleased to have both specialties,” said Boone Memorial Hospital CEO Tommy Mullins. “We know it will be so much easier on patients who need these services because they won’t have to travel as far. They can get excellent care right here close to home.”

To make an appointment with Dr. Fitzwater (Urology) please call 304-388-1965. For an appointment with Dr. Ahmed (Hematology Oncology) call 304-792-1116.

PLANO, Texas – June 4, 2013 – MEDHOST, provider of leading healthcare throughput and emergency department software, today announced that Boone Memorial Hospital (BMH) in Madison, W. Va., will use MEDHOST’s Emergency Department Information System (EDIS) to enhance patient care and safety, communication and processes in its ED, the critical access hospital’s primary admit point for patients. In addition, the MEDHOST EDIS will help the hospital meet Meaningful Use criteria so it can be eligible to receive incentive payments under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

Hospital leaders chose MEDHOST’s EDIS because of its ease of use and because of features like visual cues, automated notifications and risk alerts that help drive patient safety and improve the overall quality of care. BMH also found value in the EDIS’s ability to integrate with the hospital’s CPSI hospital information system (HIS) and in its automated and proven charge capture functionality.

“For a critical access hospital, we have high ED volumes, and nearly 90 percent of our admissions originate from the ED. We needed an EDIS that would not only help us better manage our busy ED, but also uphold and even advance the high-quality of care for which we are known. MEDHOST’s EDIS fulfilled all of those criteria,” said Susan Shreve, executive director of electronic information at Boone Memorial Hospital. “This became clear when one of our ED physicians was able to chart and place orders during a demonstration without any guidance. It speaks volumes about the intuitiveness and ease of use of the MEDHOST EDIS.”

Nine deserving college students from Boone County were each awarded a $500 Scholarship from the Boone Memorial Hospital Auxiliary this week.

The Ladies’ Auxiliary has been part of the BMH Family since shortly after the hospital opened its doors in 1964.

“We have been here nearly 50 years,” said Dawn Rita Long, current Auxiliary President. “We initially started the scholarship program years ago to help students out with college expenses.”

Woods put together a scholarship committee, who were in charge of reviewing the applications and selecting recipients. The committee consisted of Auxiliary members Kay Vance, Bette Grubbs and Harold Woods.

Woods laughed and said, “I think we are going to probably stop calling it the Ladies’ Auxiliary since we have several men now. They really do a great job and have helped us a lot. We are happy to have them.”

Students applying for the scholarship must be from Boone County and pursuing a degree in the medical field of some sort. The Auxiliary also requires that the students apply after they have completed their first year of basic courses.

Boone Memorial Hospital has scheduled its next blood drive for Friday, June 21st. The drive will be held on the second floor at Boone Memorial Hospital with registration starting in the Learning Resource Center and blood draws held just down the hall in the conference room.

“The Red Cross used to bring the mobile unit, however, we have found that having the drive indoors is a little less hectic for us mainly due to limited space and parking issues. It also tends to create a more comfortable setting for our donors,” said Karlie Price, Marketing and Public Relations Director at BMH. “We have held the last few drives indoors and they have worked out very well. We have met or exceeded goal at every drive thus far.”

Much of this success can be attributed to the hospital’s ongoing commitment to support the American Red Cross.

“We try to sponsor at least three drives a year,” said Tommy Mullins, CEO at BMH. “I feel it’s a really important cause and one we should support as much as possible, especially as a healthcare facility.”

Mullins personally gives blood at the drives.

“I honestly can’t remember a time when Mr. Mullins hasn’t given blood. The only reason he may not give is if he’s out of town. I think it’s a great example to fellow employees, many of which who also give,” said Price.

Tommy Mullins is the CEO of Boone Memorial Hospital in Madison. He joined the staff as a bookkeeper in May 1964, the same year the hospital opened its doors. He is currently the only remaining original employee of Boone Memorial Hospital and the longest running CEO in West Virginia (employed at the same continuous hospital). Mullins has received state and national recognition for his role as a small rural hospital CEO, including being named a Distinguished West Virginian, the State's highest honor, two times for his community and rural health accomplishments.

Mullins has been a leader through many difficult years of health care reform yet has made every effort to maintain a solid work environment for the employees of BMH. Boone Memorial Hospital has continued to survive and prosper at a time when many rural hospitals across the State have had to close because of poor economic conditions in most cases.

During his tenure as CEO, Mullins has watched the facility triple in personnel growth and overseen numerous expansions. Just this year Mullins led the process to convert BMH to a 501-c-3 non-profit hospital and helped secure a nearly 32 million dollar loan from the USDA to build a new hospital. Construction plans are underway and Mullins has been instrumental in the overall process. Mullins may very well end up being the only CEO in the State of WV to have been a key player in opening two new hospitals at the same location within 50 years of one another.